When to start applying discipline to children
Being a mother or father represents a major change. A change not only for parents but also for the baby. Both grow, learn, have to overcome difficulties. Therefore, the first year of the baby is a very special stage and very different from the second year, when the baby is already starting to take i
Being a mother or father represents a major change. A change not only for parents but also for the baby. Both grow, learn, have to overcome difficulties. Therefore, the first year of the baby is a very special stage and very different from the second year, when the baby is already starting to take its first steps, to move with more autonomy and to want to try everything. That is the time when parents should begin to set limits andapply discipline to their children
. How to apply discipline to childrenWhen we talk about discipline, the first word that comes to mind is 'NO'. The use of 'no' should also
have limits
, since the abuse of it, can transform its true meaning. The best thing, at the beginning, is to use it only when there is a risk situation for the child. In an interview to GuiaInfantil.com, María Luisa Ferrerós, child psychologist and author of the book 'Punished!', Gives some guidelines for parents of how and when they can apply the discipline and give limits to children. The first limit is imposed in any situation that compromises the safety and health of the children:- The discipline to the children and the limits must enter the scene at the first year of the child's life,
when the child starts to walk and to explore everything in its environment, with more autonomy.- Limits must be placed on the child, saying NO: 'Do not touch, do not upload, do not go down ...'.
- Every 'NO' that is said to the child must be accompanied by a serious face . It can not be that they are saying 'no' and at the same time they are breaking with laughter. - For a child of one year, everything we say or do, is a game. A 'no' can also be interpreted in this way. It is enough that we say 'no' so that the child insists on what he was doing and continues to provoke. The child has to learn to interpret the "no" as an order contrary to what he is doing. El - The child is trying, playing with his parents, but when he sees that before the same thing or situation they respond in the same way, with a 'no' and serious face, the child will finally stop doing what he was doing. The tantrums are an example of this.
- Children learn very quickly to respect limits. There is a series of nonverbal and important signals that complement the "no": the tone, the firmness and the gravity of the voice, the fixed gaze, the serious face or a firmer attitude. They are key in the application of limits.
- The safety of parents when transmitting limitsand discipline is also one of the positive bases of their application. If the parents are convinced that the child should not do that or that, that is, they know why they forbid it and what the goal is, it will be easier for the child to react in a positive way.
- The only way for the child to get the message from their parents is when it is clear to them that they are the captain of the boat los, those who set the standards for their good. Parents should feel like the rudder and direction of their children. The change of roles can lead the ship to experience great storms.
- The child must know
the difference between what is and what is not allowed to be done
. And parents must stand firm in their education. Respect for one another is the basis for everything to work. La - The lack of limits and discipline does not make children or their parents happy. Para - For the 'no' is not the most heard word by children in their day to day, it is best that parents provide their children a safe environment in which they can explore, investigate and circulate, without risk. - When a one-year-old child does something that may pose risks to him, it is more advisable for parents to say 'do not touch' or ", that besides that explain why he should not do it. At this age, children do not understand explanations that are too long. Parents may lose their child's attention in the fourth or fifth word. Es - It is very important los that parents are perseverant when applying limits
and discipline their children. If the child should not climb in the chair, the 'do not climb' must be applied by the whole family.
